Shawn Pustay recently visited the Outer Banks, NC and participated in two Sunrise and Sunset Photo Workshops, Sunset at Jockeys Ridge, and Sunrise at Manteo Waterfront.
Shawn e-mailed us about the workshops she attended, “I really enjoyed both you and Dan B., I learned a lot at both workshops.”
These are some of the photos she captured during the workshop’s.
Shawn, thank you for letting us share these wonderful images with everyone else.
For this photo I was teaching a Sunrise Weekly Photo Workshop at Wanchese North Carolina. We photographed this pattern of fish hooks on a trawler at the dock. They use these hooks for a style of fishing called long line fishing. The fishermen play out a long monofilament line and every so often they snap on one of these baited hooks. This style of fishing is mainly used to catch swordfish and tuna.
While we were photographing these hooks, a fishermen came out of the cabin and explained what they are to us. He had a bandage on his thumb and we asked what had happened. He had gotten his thumb tangled in the long line as it was playing out behind the boat and the monofilament cut part his thumb off. He told us that it was the second time that it happened to the same thumb. Fishing can be a dangerous business.
For most people photography starts as the sun rises and ends with sunset. Unfortunately these people are missing some of the best and most productive times to photograph. Twilight is that time when there’s just a hint of color in the sky. There is approximately a 10 minute window when the light is just right for twilight photography. It happens twice a day 1/2 hour before sunrise and 1/2 hour after sunset. Why is it worth getting up so early or staying out that late? When photographing at this time the sky turns a cobalt blue and contrasts beautifully with the warm hues of morning and man-made lights. This phenomenon happens whether it’s raining or cloudy, no matter what the weather is. It is a perfect time for capturing city skyline’s, or anywhere there are man-made lights. I suggest keeping the cameras white balance setting on daylight, as this ensures capturing the beautiful cobalt blue color in the sky. You will need to use a tripod because the shutter speeds will be long. I think you’ll agree, it’s definitely worth the extra effort of getting up earlier and staying out later.
At our Weekly Sunrise and Sunset Photo Workshops you will learn to take advantage of the beautiful twilight time.
By Kenny McKeithan
“A street performer, long haired and shaggy, sat playing his saxophone on the streets of Manhattan when tourist happened by. The tourist, lost, asked the street performer “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” The old street performer looked up at the tourist over his dirty glasses and said, ”Practice man, practice!!”
And so it is with our photography, like anything else, to get better or excel at it one has to practice it.”
A quote by Percy Harris, “Skill in photography is a result of practice not purchase.”
By Dan Waters
Silhouettes are one of the easiest ways to take your photography to a new level. They almost always have that wow effect. Frequently, beginners accidentally make silhouettes by placing their subject in front of a strong light source. However, the best silhouettes are well thought out and planned in advance. The shutter speeds are generally higher because you’re exposing for the light, which means you can hand hold without worrying about camera movement.
There are a couple simple guidelines to help you make great silhouettes.
1. Place your subject in front of a light source.
2. Expose for the light source. In other words make sure you’re getting a correct exposure for the light behind your subject. You can do this by framing your shot without your subject
pushing the shutter button down half way to lock the exposure, then re-frame to include the subject and take the photograph.
3. The subject has to be simple and easily recognizable.
4. Change your angle and perspective until the elements in your photograph are clearly visible, with no overlaps.
If you follow these simple guidelines, silhouettes are easy to master and will give a fresh look to your photographs.
Every year, to celebrate the first flight on December 17, there is a fly over at the Wright Brothers Memorial in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. I went to photograph some of the planes with Dan Beauvais, who is a wonderful aircraft photographer. He gave me some pointers about shutter speed; if the shutter speed is too fast you do not see the blur of the props and the photo looks static. It’s a lot harder than you would think to follow the planes, use the right shutter speed, expose correctly, keep everything in focus, and keep the plane framed in the shot. This is the best shot I took of the day. The planes were too high to capture the Wright Brothers Memorial and the plane in the same photo and still have the plane look large enough to see well. It was a lot of fun but judging from the number of discarded photos I took, I need a lot more practice.
Thanks, Dan Waters
This tip works for everything, insects, birds, pets,people, and even inanimate objects. The viewer has a greater connection with the subject if the photograph is taken at the subjects “eye level”. If you want the viewer to relate to your subject get down on its level. This can create an “even playing field” and help to show the subjects scale and relationship to its surroundings.
There are times to break this rule and shoot up or down on your subject. If you would like to convey a feeling of smallness, insignificant, or to belittle your subject get above and shoot down at it. The opposite is also true if you would like to create a feeling of grandeur, control, or strength then shoot up toward your subject. Angle and perspective have everything to do with how the viewer relates to the subject.
Dan Beauvais or Dan Waters will lead an Outer Banks sunrise photo workshop Tuesdays at Avalon fishing pier, Outer Banks sunset photo workshop Wednesdays at Jockeys Ridge State Park, and Outer Banks sunrise photo workshop Thursday’s at either the Manteo Waterfront or Wanchese Harbor from Easter through Thanksgiving. The cost for each workshop will be $65. For more information follow the links below.
Register now to save your spot! Call 252-491-8437
Buy a card or print of this photo.
All lenses have a built in star filter. To get the star effect stop your lens down to a very small aperture opening (large f-stop number). Any small pinpoint of light will become a star. Lens apertures are constructed of blades and the number of blades determines the shape of the aperture.The number of points on the star reflects this shape. By counting the number of points you can tell how many slides the aperture opening has. If you’re star has eight points then the aperture opening is an octagon. More expensive, better quality lenses have more blades in the aperture, to keep the aperture as round as possible. This helps make the boca (out of focus areas in a photograph) more pleasing. Wide-angle lenses seem to work best for this technique because the light source has to be small or a pinpoint in the photograph.
High-key sounds like something to do with music, actually I’m talking about high-key photography. It is just as the name implies, the image’s key tones are high or light instead of midrange. The tones are moved up, or high on the exposure scale. A high key photograph can be made by intentionally overexposing an image in the camera or by using Photoshop’s curves or level adjustments.
Pier into the Light
This image of Kitty Hawk Pier was exposed two f-stops over what the camera metered. The camera was on a tripod with a long shutter speed which turned the waves into mist.
High key images are very easy to make. Simply use the exposure compensation dial on your camera to over expose one or two stops. Give it a try, I know you’ll be pleased with the results.
Here are a few student photos from recent workshops I have taught. I had a wonderful time sharing experiences with the students and I’m proud of the work they have produced.
Thank you. Dan Waters
